Flu bug hits Manteca senior living complex

The Prestige Senior Living retirement home on East Manteca off Louise Avenue is under quarantine due to a rash of residents ill with the flu.

A Prestige spokeswoman said Friday that their residents are asked to remain in their rooms but they are not prohibited from leaving the building to go shopping or to visit relatives as long as they have no flu-like symptoms.

Krista Dommer, the San Joaquin County Health Services public information officer, said symptoms can reflect the Noro virus as well as the common flu strains. She explained the severity of flu illness can vary from mild to severe noting that complications can lead to hospitalization and sometimes even death.

Doctors Hospital of Manteca on East North Street has been full with no beds available for the past several days with a very busy emergency department due to flu-related issues.

Family nurse practitioner Karen Schaaf of Manteca Urgent Care in downtown Manteca said she has seen a dozen patients during the past week with flu like symptoms as well as common colds.

“People who haven’t gotten sick before in years are sick this year coming to us where they don’t have to wait to be seen,” she said.

Schaad noted that zinc and vitamin C are two things that will help combat the virus.

San Joaquin County Public Health Services reported that last flu season there were four flu-related deaths in the county.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends a yearly seasonal flu vaccine as the first and most important step in protecting against seasonal influenza viruses.